Breathing Again
by Spawkwing Diamond
Summary: Christian runs into Satine's best friend. Together, they try to help each other learn to live again. LOOK! A TITLE! WOOP WOOP!
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: Me no ownie anyone or anything cept for Chloe....although....if I owned Christian.....woooooo boy!!!! *tries to get her mind out of the gutter....but fails* Uh.....erm......anywho...here goes...this is my first MR fic, so please no flames :)  
  
Paris-1901  
  
Christian rolled over in his bed and groaned as the sun's bright light hit him in the face. Shouldn't have had all that absinthe last night, he thought, placing his feet on the floor and rubbing his face. Christ, he had a hangover. One of the worst since...well, ever. He dragged himself out of bed, and walked to the window. Today they were tearing down the Moulin Rouge, and Christian felt as if he needed to bathe in the sight of the elephant and the windmill just once more. A tear ran down his cheek as he looked out the window. His memories of truth, beauty, freedom, and love were going to fall down along with the windmill. He realized he couldn't stay in his apartment. Not today. He had to get out.  
  
After a shower and a shave, he changed into some clothes and walked down the streets of Monamarte. He didn't really have a destination, he just wanted to walk. Day after day of sitting in his small apartment completing Satine's story had consumed him. He couldn't remember the last time he had been out. He took it all in. The sights, the sounds, and the smells. One smell in particular hit him. The smell of food. He realized how hungry he was. He saw a restaurant on his right and figured he could spare enough money to eat there. After all, he thought with a chuckle, walking into the restaurant, they say you haven't lived until you've eaten food soaked in grease. As he sat in his corner booth, he lit a cigarette, another bad habit he had acquired in his years since Satine. As he felt the smooth smoke go down his lungs, a voice broke into his head.  
  
"What can I get for you, Monsieur?"  
  
He looked up and saw a young woman waiting to take his order. As Christian looked at her, he noticed she was very familiar looking. She was tall and slender, with dark green eyes and long wavy brown hair with streaks of gold in it. Then it hit him. He knew her from the Moulin Rouge. Her name was Chloe, and she was one of Satine's closest friends.  
  
"C-Chloe?" he asked, his hands shaking violently.  
  
She looked into his eyes for the first time and almost dropped the piece of paper she was using to take his order. "Oh my God.....Christian..." she said, tears coming into her eyes. She began to speak. "What are-"  
  
"How did-" Christian began at the same time. He looked into her eyes and they began laughing.  
  
Chloe opened her mouth to say something, when a voice came from behind her.  
  
"HEY LADY! CAN WE GET OUR FOOD TODAY?!?!?"  
  
She looked at Christian apologetically. "Listen, I get off in about a half an hour, if you want to just wait for me, and then we can talk a little more."  
  
Christian smiled. "That'd be fine," he said.  
  
"Ok, then," Chloe said, hurrying over to the men screaming for their food.  
  
As Christian watched her walk away, he took another drag on his cigarette and closed his eyes. How long had it been since he had seen Chloe? Maybe about a month after Satine's death, then she had disappeared. He had been worried about her, other than Satine, she was the only warmth he had ever felt in the Moulin Rouge. She had been the one who stayed with him after Satine's death, the one who comforted him when Zidler refused to reveal where they had buried Satine. She had been his sanity, and then she just vanished one day. Christian had worried about her, and neither Zidler or Marie had been much help in telling him where she was. After a while though, he had forgotten about her. Satine had been the one thing in his mind.  
  
"Christian? Are you ready?" Chloe's voice brought him back to reality with a snap. He looked at his cigarette which was nothing but ashes. Curse of the writer, he thought. Getting so caught up in your thoughts, time just flies by.  
  
"Yeah, yeah...I'm ready" he said, getting up and walking out the door. 


	2. Chloe's Story

Disclaimer and stuff: Yeah, yeah, I don't own Ewan...but if I did, OOOOH BABY! And Moulin Rouge and all the other characters aren't mine either....*BAZ IS THE MAN!* HOWEVER!!! Chloe is mine so don't steal her...PWEASE?!?!? I'll cry :) But anyways, MY WRITERS BLOCK IS GONE!! ON WITH CHAPTER TWO!!!  
  
As they walked the streets of Monmarte, Christian and Chole talked about the past and what they had been up to. Actually, it was Christian who did most of the talking, he went on and one about Satine and his book and telling the story of their love so fast, you'd think he was going to pass out from lack of oxygen. Chloe walked alongside him and nodded politely, listening to every word. She had always been a good listener, always listening to what Christian and Satine had to say. Finally, before they knew it, they were outside Christian's garret.  
  
"So, would you like to come up and read what I have written?" Christian asked. "I normally don't let people read my work, but I figure since you were Satine's friend, you would want to read it."  
  
Chloe looked at him, then tears came to her eyes. "I would like that very much," she said, as they headed up to his garret.  
  
When they got up there, Christian immediately wished he hadn't invited her up. The place was a mess. Paper all over the place, absinthe bottles strewn about the floor, clothes heaped up all over the place, (A/N: Sounds like my apartment... :-D) and the stench of filth and absinthe was overpowering. Christian looked at Chloe ashamedly. "It's a bit of a mess I'm afraid."  
  
Chloe smiled and looked at him. "Nah, it's just the typical abode of the writer," she said. "Besides, I've seen worse," she laughed, walked across the garret looking for a clean spot to sit. Christian cleared her off a spot on his bed, and she sat down, folding her hands in her lap.  
"How about a drink?" Christian said. "I'm sure I have something around here other than liquid hallucinogens," he said, going into the kitchen. Chloe laughed as she stood up and wandered to his typewriter. "Water's fine," she said, looking at the thick stack of papers by the typewriter. "Is this....the story?" She said, running her finger over the top page.  
  
Christian stood next to her. "Yeah, it is. It's the story of Satine and I," he said, handing Chloe some water. "Here, it's not exactly ice cold, but it's better than nothing."   
  
"It's fine, thanks," Chloe said, drinking her water.  
  
Christian looked from his typewriter to Chloe. "You know, I've gone on and on about myself, and you haven't gotten in a word edgewise. How was your life outside the Moulin Rouge?"  
  
Chloe put her glass down and looked at Christian with sad eyes. "Actually, I wish I was still there, taking my chances with the upper class scum. At least they have some class."   
"What do you mean," Christian said, sitting at the typewriter and motioning for Chloe to pull up a chair.  
She sat on the chair and looked sadly into his eyes. She then rolled up her sleeve to reveal a scar running from her elbow all the way up to her shoulder. It looked like a fresh cut that hadn't been doctored. Christian looked at the gruesome scar, then at Chloe's face.   
  
"What happened to your-"  
  
"I guess some people just can't take no for an answer," Chloe said, smiling bitterly as she began to roll her sleeve back down.  
  
"No, that's hasn't been taken care of," Christian said. "Here, let me...." he said, grabbing some brandy and a bandage from a shelf. He began to doctor her arm as she continued.  
"Satine and I had a plan. We were going to run away from the Moulin Rouge and leave Harold behind. We had planned it since I first came there. We began to save up a little money at a time, waiting until we had enough to get far enough away from here. When you came along, Satine's motivation grew even more. That night that she came to you to tell you of her choice of the Duke, she came to me afterward. She broke down and told me her side of the story before Harold could feed me some more lies. Harold had told her she was dying, and that to save you, she had to hurt you. She really thought she was doing the best thing for you. After the opening of Spectacular, Spectacular, I was to come to you and bring you to the train station in Monmarte, where Satine would be waiting for you, ready to run away with you. But, as you know, it didn't work out that way. But what Satine didn't know was, Harold knew she was dying. The bastard knew she was dying and didn't tell her so his precious show could go on. Well, he got his show. When Satine died, I knew I couldn't stay there a moment longer with Harold and the other scum. I ran into my room and grabbed the money I had saved, a few personal items, and I ran. I ran until I thought I would die. The whole time I wept. I wept for Satine, I wept for myself, and I wept for you losing Satine. I took what money I had and looked for a place to stay the night, but before I could, I was jumped and robbed. The only thing they left me was this," Chloe reached into a pocket on her tattered dress and pulled out a photo. Christian looked at her and tears came to his eyes. It was a picture of Chloe and Satine. It must have been taken long before Satine met Christian. Her hair was much shorter and her face looked much younger, with less wear on it. Chloe looked no more than seventeen.  
  
Chloe put the picture back in her pocket. "Satine was the one at the Moulin Rouge who took me under her wing. She was like my mother, looking after me, making sure I was ok, and she kept people like the Duke away from me." Composing herself, she finished her story. "Needless to say, the next thing I know, I'm living in an alley. I begin to work so I could feed myself. Then one night, as I'm walking home, if you could call it a home, from work, I found myself cornered by some men. They begin to taunt me. They had found out about my past at the Moulin Rouge. One of them said, and I'll never forget it, 'Let's see if she'll fuck for free as good as she can for diamonds.' I had never been so scared. Well, I put up a fight, one of them pulled out a knife, cut me, and left me for dead, bleeding in that alley. I remember as I lay there bleeding, too weak to move. I know this is going to sound insane, but I heard Satine's voice. She told me to get up and not let anyone ever win against me. Well, ripped some of my dress, wrapped it around my arm and went home. That was about a week ago." When she finished she had tears in her eyes, as did Christian.  
  
"God, Chloe, I had no idea. I'm so sorry," Christian said.   
  
Chloe looked at him and burst into tears. "I was so scared, Christian...so scared."  
  
Christian got out of his chair and went to her. He put his arms around her, somewhat awkwardly. It had been so long since he had held another human being. He stroked her hair and let her cry it out until she was finished.   
When her crying had subsided, Chloe said something to Christian, something he had wanted to hear since Satine's death.  
  
"I can take you to her," Chloe said, wiping tears from her eyes.  
  
  
(A/N: Welp, that's chapter two...hope you guys enjoyed it...it came to me in like two minutes, so it may be full of plot holes and what not, but you know what? It's my story and I don't care :-D BWHAHAHAH! Anywho, I'm also working on a songfic, so look for that too...don't forget to Read and Review...I love to know what I am doing right and wrong, just no flames...constructive criticism is what I prefer to call it...~*Sarah*~) 


	3. Painted On My Heart

Disclaimer and stuff: Unforturnately, neither the Moulin Rouge or Christian is mine...*breaks down crying* But...Chloe is mine, and I will bitch slap anyone that steals her :)...I figured that a MR fic needs a song in it, so "Painted On My Heart" belongs to The Cult, and not me...and if you've never heard it, you should Download it, b/c the melody and everything is GORGEOUS!!! :) Well, here it is....chapter three...with...*Drumroll* SHORTER PARAGRAPHS!! *thanks for the tip* :)  
  
"I can take you to her"   
  
The words echoed in Christian's head. Her. His Satine. After all this time he was finally going to get to see her. He looked at Chloe, who was still wiping her eyes and sobbing gently. "H-H-How do you know..." Chloe finished his sentence.  
  
"Where she's buried? Marie told me one night in a drunken stupor. She made me promise I wouldn't tell Harold, and she took me to see her." She looked at Christian with a smile. "And finally, I can take you as well."   
  
The walk to Satine's resting place was the most nerve-wrecking walk Christian had ever taken in his life. He would get so lost in his thoughts of getting to see Satine, that the only thing that would bring him out of it would be Chloe clearing her throat. He would turn around and see that he was at least fifty feet ahead of her. He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry."   
  
Together they walked through the streets of Monmarte until they were overlooking the city. Chloe pointed to a large oak tree surrounded by roses. "Over there," she said, tears filling her eyes.   
  
As Christian walked towards the tree, he felt his heart tighten and his eyes filling with burning tears. All of his memories with Satine flashed in front of his eyes. Her decent on the trapeeze when he first met her. Their first kiss on the elephant. The times they had made love. The times they had lain in bed for hours on end, just holding each other. Satine telling him she didn't love him. His final trip to the Moulin Rouge. All these memories flashed through his mind like snapshots.   
  
As he neared the oak tree, he saw a wooden cross that had been pounded into the ground. Roses grew all around them, some the color of Satine's lips, others the color of her hair. A single strand of ivy grew around the cross marking Satine's grave. He dropped to his knees by her grave and held the cross. He realized how silly he must look, but he didn't care. He was with his love once again. As the tears ran down his face, he pulled away from the cross and began to sing.  
  
I thought you'd be out of my mind  
And I'd finally found a way to learn to live without you  
I thought it was just a matter of time  
Till I had a hundred reasons not to think about you  
  
But it's just not so  
And after all this time, I still can't let go  
  
I've still got your face  
Painted on my heart  
Scrawled upon my soul  
Etched upon my memory, baby  
  
And I've got your kiss  
Still burning on my lips  
The touch of your fingertips  
This love so deep inside of me, baby  
  
I've tried everything that I can  
To get my heart to forget you  
But it just can't seem to  
  
I guess it's just no use  
In every part of me  
Is still a part of you  
  
And I've still got your face  
Painted on my heart  
Scrawled upon my soul  
Etched upon my memory, baby  
  
And I've got your kiss  
Still burning on my lips  
The touch of your fingertips  
This love so deep inside of me, baby  
  
I've still got your face  
Painted on my heart  
Painted on my heart  
Painted on my heart, oh baby  
  
Something in your eyes keeps haunting me  
I'm trying to escape you  
And I know there ain't no way to  
To chase you from my mind  
  
I've still got your face  
Painted on my heart  
Scrawled upon my soul  
Etched upon my memory baby  
  
I've got your kiss  
Still burning on my lips  
The touch of my fingertips  
This love so deep inside of me, baby  
  
I've still got your face  
I've still got your face  
Painted on my heart  
Painted on my heart  
  
As he finished his song, his strength left him. He collapsed on his stomach, holding the ground where his love lay. He cried like he had never cried before. His body heaved with sobs. He cried until he threw up, and then he cried some more. As he lay on the ground, sobbing, he felt Chloe kneel beside him. She sat him up and pulled him to her. Together they sat by Satine's grave crying and holding each other.  
  
  
Blaaaaaaaah! Part three is up...I LOVE THAT SONG! It's the only reason I bought the "Gone in 60 Seconds" soundtrack...well, that song and DMX "Party Up..." LoL :) But, how did you like it? Good or bad? I actually don't think it's half bad for my first EVER fanfic :) But, reviews are always welcome. Let me know what you think....thanks :) 


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